Apple Isle Showdown: Tas Govt threatens to end Hawks, North deals if no plan for 19th side

[FootyJunkie]

Would anyone in Perth support a third team? Eagles are already one of the best clubs in the league and Freo have carved out the under-dog/battler niche (or the "I don't like west coast" niche). What does the new team offer? Would it even lead to more football fans or just take from the memberships of the other two?

WA3 may just result out of circumstance. Bottom line, I don't think its truly necessary, but would solidify WA/Perth as being the second largest market in the AFL.
Would provide some flexibility with the TV fixture for some Sunday night games in the west too.

Joondalup would steal a few fans from West Coast, particularly those that are old school West Perth fans, but I reckon it would take a generation before it builds a consistent following. Might have to bring out the tarps at Optus Stadium during the lean years.

 

[El_Scorcho]

this league is already completely compromised trying to accomodate a bunch of clubs that can’t survive without the AFL teat.

How is it compromised?

The AFL is a financial juggernaut. It can easily afford to support clubs like Gold Coast, GWS or a Tasmanian team. Why does it matter that some clubs need a bit more AFL assistance to survive?

If the AFL is compromised by anything at the moment, it's having a majority of teams in 1 state. Adding Tassie and a 3rd Perth team solves that problem entirely.

 

[sprockets]

Need to either merge two Vic teams, or get rid of one Vic team (or either GWS or GC) first. Eighteen teams is the magic number, there needs to be an opening.

Shocked to be sitting here that a WCE supporter would come out with this. Mainly shocked that it took 4 minutes instead of the usual 4 seconds.

#vote1WCExitparty

 

[terrybull]

Need to either merge two Vic teams, or get rid of one Vic team (or either GWS or GC) first. Eighteen teams is the magic number, there needs to be an opening.

Wasn’t long ago 16 was the magic number for the AFL had to push out Fitzroy for Port Adelaide.

 

[RUNVS]

Good. Lets us live or die on this hill. Sick of us begging for it. Sick of this being a story for the last 30 years. The line is here, yes or no; what is the actual answer AFL.

Problem is Tasmania's population has not grown nearly as much as the rest of the country over the last 30 years.

 

[Bradkli]

Good on Tassie. They deserve a team, a lot more than Good Coast and Western Sydney did...


Looks like we’re going to need to find some more pokies to help fund our Dingley move...

 

[The 747]

Good for Tassie realising they are being taken for a ride and taking a stand.

 

[Canberra Pear]

Sets up Canberra well to enter as the 20th team.

Coming in in the late 2020s after Tassie will give GWS enough time to pivot to Sydney full-time.

Greater Canberra is closing in on 500k. Play a home game each in the strong footy areas of Albury and Wagga and you've got a potential fanbase of 700k.

Bring on the Tassie Devils and Canberra Griffins!

 

[The 747]

Sets up Canberra well to enter as the 20th team.

Coming in in the late 2020s after Tassie will give GWS enough time to pivot to Sydney full-time.

Greater Canberra is closing in on 500k. Play a home game each in the strong footy areas of Albury and Wagga and you've got a potential fanbase of 700k.

Bring on the Tassie Devils and Canberra Griffins!

The Canberra Skywhales?

 

[Canberra Pear]

The Canberra Skywhales?

I could definitely get behind that.

It would definitely be an intimidating visit for opposing teams with the Skywhale just floating over Manuka Oval.

 

[jim boy]

Tassie plus a 'Rest of The World Team' - the ROTW team can just play in whatever overseas fad happens to be in vogue and canberra/wagga wagga/albury the rest of the time

 

[Papa G]

The perfect comp is
8 Vic
2 WA
2 SA
2 NSW
2 QLD
1 Tas
1 Canberra

Less corruption from Vic State Govt/AFL/MCC.

Everybody with half a brain knows this.

 

[The 747]

The perfect comp is
8 Vic
2 WA
2 SA
2 NSW
2 QLD
1 Tas
1 Canberra

Less corruption from Vic State Govt/AFL/MCC.

Everybody with half a brain knows this.

Why is eight the perfect number for Victoria?

 

[Dazb86]

Why is eight the perfect number for Victoria?

VicBias

 

[fargothegreat]

Papi Gutwein is the most popular premier we've had for a long time.

Good on him for standing up to the AFL. I've been saying for years that I'd rather have no footy than to keep propping up Victorian clubs while we get no closer to having our own team.

The AFL could really do with the government's money right now, so this might just work.

 

[Dazb86]

Im not sure the league has the talent to field 19 sides. It's already been diluted with GWS and Gold Coast coming through.

 

[Johnny Bananas]

There is simply nowhere near enough talent for 20 teams.

What makes you say this? There were several state league players taken in this past draft and several more who were unlucky to miss out due to list sizes.

 

[Quivorir]

I swear I read that this guy has sent an "official letter" demanding a team every couple of months.

 

[Johnny Bananas]

Would anyone in Perth support a third team? Eagles are already one of the best clubs in the league and Freo have carved out the under-dog/battler niche (or the "I don't like west coast" niche). What does the new team offer? Would it even lead to more football fans or just take from the memberships of the other two?

We have a long discussion on this already.

West Coast are already the most profitable club in the league and are only going to grow into a bigger and bigger juggernaut. Hard to get tickets to games, probably only at high prices too, such is the size of their membership list. I'd imagine there are plenty of fans who have just been TV fans practically all their lives. What a third team would offer is easy and cheap access to live games without the baggage Freo would have as the Eagles' hated derby rival.

There's no issue with the Eagles losing some fans to a third team, it's only a problem if it cuts into Freo's support base significantly, but this can be mitigated by basing the team as far as possible from Freo's support base within the Perth metro area. I favour the outer north east, because there's at least some physical separation between the rest of Perth and places like Ellenbrook and Midland.

 

[Father Jack]

The AFL will find a way to tell us that we've got an AFL team by having a team named North Melbourne play most of their games down here while still being based at Arden Street.

 

[tigerwill]

How much $ wise does the Tasmanian government put in to
Hawthorn
North Melbourne
per year?

 

[Tasmanian saint]

Problem is Tasmania's population has not grown nearly as much as the rest of the country over the last 30 years.

We have over 90,000 paid up afl club members that’s highest per capita in the country and more then Sydney and gws combined and Brisbane and the suns combined so it might be time to drop population is the only thing that matters line

 

[Tasmanian saint]

How much $ wise does the Tasmanian government put in to
Hawthorn
North Melbourne
per year?

8 million

 

[LeverPuller]

This is the expansion path that should happen to get to 20.

Tassie is priority atm.

But the same priority is not currently in place with Canberra, so it may take some time.
Giants will still be around using it as their second home and they'd need a better stadium to replace Manuka.
The AFL won't be content with a 19 club comp for more than a few years.

WA3 (Joondalup) are a good shot at being #20, even though Perth is completely fine being a two team market.

No chance of a better stadium in ACT. Govt can’t work out how to upgrade GIO, and that’s falling apart. Every time a Manuka upgrade is floated the residents of Kingston (who are mostly lobbyists and senior public servants) use their own networks to kill it. It’s not happening.

 

[port_adelaide_1870]

20 teams, my god this comp is a joke